More than 2,000 University students are hoping to get tickets to the Final Four, but only about 300 will get them.
Students lined up outside the Flowers Building lounge Monday to enter the ticket lottery, which was run by the Office of Student Development.
For $65, a lucky few will get to see the men's basketball team play in the NCAA Final Four, which will be held Saturday and Monday in Charlotte.
"I'm not the kind to camp out, and I knew if I showed up all the die-hard Dukies would be here," said Trinity senior Jeff White.
Students said they were willing to wait more than 30 minutes in line for the opportunity to see the national championship being played 2 1/2 hours from campus.
But they are facing tough odds--the University will distribute at least 10 percent of its approximately 3,000 tickets to students, said Jack Winters, assistant director of the Iron Duke program. The Athletic Department will try to give more, however.
Members of the band might be included in the student allotment, Winters said.
The odds had some students regretting their decision not to go in years past. "I really wish I'd gone the first couple of years because everyone got tickets," said Trinity senior Ben Bernstein.
All 571 students who entered the lottery received tickets to the 1991 Final Four, while about 310 of the 435 students who entered the 1992 lottery received tickets to the NCAA semifinal and final games in Minneapolis.
Other schools distribute far fewer seats to their students, Winters said. During the 1990 Final Four in Denver, the University of Nevada at Las Vegas sold about 2 percent of its tickets to students, he said.
The Charlotte Coliseum will seat a total of 22,806 for the Final Four, according to the NCAA. The other tickets been distributed to the other teams, representatives of NCAA colleges, coaches, the University of North Carolina at Charlotte, corporate sponsors and the general public.
Some students said they should be given priority by class or according to their attendance at earlier rounds of the tournament.
"I won't get a chance to see Duke play in Cameron again, so I might as well be able to see them in the Final Four," White said.
But most said they thought the process was fair, and that even if they did not get tickets, they had backup plans.
"If I don't get tickets here . . . we might drive down there and watch the game and try to get another ticket," Bernstein said.
"Being a senior, last chance to see Duke win the championship--I'd probably pay $200," said Trinity senior Scott Cooper.
Cooper and Bernstein may be able to buy tickets from some of their fellow students. Second-year Fuqua students Simone and Liz Dagnino said they planned to resell their tickets at a premium.
"It's a good opportunity," Simone Dagnino said.
Students were well-behaved in line, said Sue Wasiolek, dean of student development. Wasiolek sat in the lounge all day checking DukeCards and taking money from applicants.
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